Documents

Confirmation of GBC

You need a document that confirms your status for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC).

• Please see the Entry Requirements section if you need information about GBC

A document that only mentions the British Psychological Society (BPS) without confirming GBC is not sufficient.

Please provide 1 of the following 3 items

Which document you can provide depends on whether your psychology qualifications were GBC-accredited and where you studied.

1) Letter from the BPS - any psychology qualification

If you have completed university level psychology qualifications, in the UK or elsewhere, you can have them assessed for GBC by applying to the BPS for Graduate membership.

If you are or have been a Graduate member of the BPS, they usually confirm your GBC status in the email they send you when you first become a Graduate member. Please provide a copy of this email.

If you have lost it and you are currently a Graduate member you can ask the BPS for another email confirming you have GBC.

Please allow at least 8 weeks for the BPS to process membership applications and/or requests for emails.

• Please see the International Applicants section for information on applying to the BPS for membership/GBC

2) Academic transcript - some UK and Irish psychology qualifications

Some UK and Irish universities state in the academic transcript they provide after you qualify that your psychology qualification was accredited for GBC, but many do not.

If your transcript includes this then you do not need to provide another document to confirm GBC. However, if the transcript only mentions the BPS and does not confirm GBC this is not sufficient.

• Please see the Documents for Specific Course Centres section for information about academic transcripts

3) Letter from your university - UK and Irish GBC-accredited psychology qualifications

If you completed a GBC-accredited psychology qualification at a UK or Irish university, you can ask them for a letter to confirm GBC. This should come from the university department where you studied and must:

1. identify you as the person that successfully completed the qualification
2. confirm that the qualification was accredited for GBC at the time of your studies
3. confirm that you successfully completed all the necessary modules for GBC

We suggest that you contact your university psychology department as soon as possible to give them time to send this to you.

Example of suitable text for a letter from a UK University:

I confirm that [Student Name] successfully completed the following course at [University Name]:

Course Title: [e.g. BSc in Psychology]
Period of Study: [e.g. 09/2018 to 07/2022]
Result: [e.g. 2:1, merit, 65%, etc]

This course was accredited at this time by the British Psychological Society for GBC, and the student successfully completed all the necessary modules for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC).

Irish qualifications

The Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) and the British Psychological Society (BPS) recognise each other's undergraduate accreditation procedures. So if you have completed a qualification that makes you eligible for graduate membership of the PSI it will also have covered enough psychology for GBC.

We would therefore suggest the following alternative wording for a University GBC letter, referring to the PSI.

Example of suitable text for a letter from an Irish University:

I confirm that [Student Name] successfully completed the following course at [University Name]:

Course Title: [e.g. BSc in Psychology]
Period of Study: [e.g. 09/2018 to 07/2022]
Result: [e.g. 2:1, merit, 65%, etc]

This course was accredited at this time by the Psychological Society of Ireland, and the student successfully completed all the necessary modules to be eligible for membership of the PSI. The PSI and the BPS recognise each other's undergraduate accreditation procedures so courses accredited for membership of the PSI also provide eligibility for GBC.

What if I'm still studying for my psychology qualification?

• Please see our Should I Apply This Year page for more information

This has guidance for people completing psychology studies in autumn 2024 or in spring/summer 2025.